Forever on the Beach
by LostinOblivion
Summary: When planning to start the rest of your life gets chaotic and stressful, you stop planning and starting living. Fluff piece.


Matt stirred, blinking his eyes open against the sunlight somehow making it's way into his bedroom. Squinting against the light, he realized why the sun was allowed to blind him. Their thick, dark curtains were fluttering open from the breeze outside, flashing him with light every so often. That had to be one hell of a breeze. They'd gotten the curtains so they could sleep as late as they wanted on weekends, and after negotiations that went into the night, or lasted days. Maybe in the future, he'd nail the damn things shut.

Careful not to wake his sleeping fiancée, Matt climbed out of the bed, and went to the windows. He closed and locked both, and then walked the other direction to turn the A/C on, so it would be cool enough to sleep with blankets. That's when he got a look at the clock, and couldn't quite believe his eyes. It wasn't even seven. That in and of itself wasn't a surprise, it was more that he'd woken up on his own, and didn't feel that tired. He was more excited than he thought.

Today was a big, important day. He'd been looking forward to this for awhile. They both had. They started toward this day two years ago, when Matt had taken her to dinner with a plan in his head. Ring in his hand, down one knee, he'd been so nervous he'd forgotten the big speech he'd practiced. So he'd fallen back on comedy, and blurted the first thing that came to mind. He'd asked her to make an honest man out of him.

Emily had giggled and kissed him, and said yes, she would love to. After he'd slipped the ring on her finger, and they were holding each other, she'd whispered seductively in his ear that it was too bad, she liked corrupting him. Matt's eyes had widened, but he'd recovered himself quickly, and whispered back that she was welcome to do that anytime. They'd made it through dessert, and had then driven home as quick as the speed limits allowed, and made love long into the night.

That had been perfect, but since then things had been a chaotic mess. They'd tried that first year after the engagement to plan a little, but things had just kept coming up. They were busy with work, Emily was sent to Quantico to teach for a few months, they were both sent to a negotiators convention, and Matt had been assigned to train a new negotiator one on one, a method the Bureau had decided to try. Everything in their personal lives got hectic too. Ally was released from prison early, stressing Emily out, Matt's brother wanted to reconnect, his father had been seeing an oncologist about a growth, and Emily's family decided to have a reunion. All the stress from everything had pretty much smothered all their excitement to plan a wedding.

This past year, things hadn't really slowed down at all. When they actually tried to plan, everything seemed insane to them. One of the women at work suggested first that they go to a wedding planner. They'd met three, and found that they were very expensive, and everything they suggested was way too extravagant. So, they'd decided to do it themselves, and it was just overwhelming. Apparently, wedding invitations couldn't just be nice white cards, there was a whole realm of designs with ribbon, beads, and shiny gold writing.

Matt had come home one day about a month ago to find Emily stooped over a stack of bride magazines, staring blankly at one page. He'd greeted her, but all she said back was taffeta, repeating it a few times. She then got up, grabbed a bottle of advil, swallowed three down, and went back to staring blankly at the same page. After an hour, he'd managed to get her to tell him what was wrong.

She'd fought with her mother, her mother wanted her to get married in Albany, in her childhood church. She'd explained to her mother that not only had she not gone to church since she was 16, but Matt's family was on the west coast, as were most of their friends, it was impractical to ask that many people to schlep across the country. Her mother didn't want to let it go.

That was the start of how their plans changed so drastically, and their wedding ended up today. After two years of being engaged and stressed, they were finally getting married. That thought in his head, Matt felt wide-awake. He was excited to be able to stand up, and tell the world he'd loved her, and wanted to be with her forever. After this long waiting, he wasn't nervous at all.

Now, he walked back to the bed, and admired his bride-to-be. Her red-brown curls were splayed over the beige sheets, tangled and wild from going to bed with it wet. Her arms were clasped to her chest, and her lips slightly parted, as she breathed slowly and rhythmically, in and out. That beautiful sight had been in his bed, or their bed as it were, for four years now. Short years, and if he woke up to her for the next forty, well, he'd still want another forty more.

Matt wasn't quite sure what it was about her, but something about Emily was enough to bring him to his knees. Maybe it was the seriousness with which she viewed ice cream flavors. Her favorites were coffee and chocolate chip, with chocolate sprinkles, no rainbow ones, they were unnatural, even though she liked m&ms. As an alternative, she liked butter pecan, but when he asked if she like chocolate sprinkles on that too, she'd looked like he was nuts. Apparently, chocolate doesn't go well with butter pecan.

Though, if she was on her period, and he brought her chocolate brownie fudge flavor, she'd give him a kiss strong enough of strip the oxygen from his lungs. Oddly, she didn't care for the flavor unless she had her period, said it was too heavy. It puzzled the hell out of him, because she'd literally make a meal out of the ice cream once a month. But, that was only one of her little quirks. She had a dozen, and he enjoyed every one of them. It was what made Emily, Emily; what made her the woman that could drive him crazy.

Matt crawled back into bed carefully, and under the covers, and just laid their watching her sleep. He moved some of her hair so he could see her face better, and he let his hand trace the line of her face, and over her shoulder to her waist. In response, Emily, still asleep, inched closer to him, so her head was against his chest. The soft cotton of her tank top brushed his bare chest as she nuzzled closer to him. Matt let his arm settle around her, kissed the top of her head, and closed his eyes, drifting back off to sleep.

Their flight wasn't until the afternoon anyway.

* * *

Two hours after Matt had woken, Emily slowly came into consciousness, twitching her nose against the chest hair tickling it. When she finally got her eyes open, she saw man, lots of man. She must have burrowed into Matt during the night, understandably; this spot was warm and cozy. She smiled to herself, still pressed against his chest, enjoying her toasty little cocoon. Then she remembered what day it was, and realized she could wake-up in this cocoon for the next several dozen years.

It made her smile wider, and then she gently pulled away so she could see Matt's face. Her fiancé. It had been weird to refer to him as that at first, but she figured calling him her husband was going to feel even stranger. There had been a few times in Emily's life where she'd believed she'd never fall in love, let alone get married. Plenty of guys hit on her, and some she even dated, but they all eventually realized that she wasn't what they wanted. She was too damaged from her childhood, and they didn't want any part of that.

But, here she was on her wedding day. Well, she supposed tomorrow was their really wedding day, but the whole thing was starting today. The flight really would last into tomorrow, but it felt like it was today. Two years was plenty long enough for an engagement. God, she really never thought she'd be anxious to get married, but she was very anxious. She wanted to marry Matt because she loved him, but she was also eager for their lives be normal again. No more stressing over catering, and dresses, and locations, and flowers, and everything else.

It hadn't helped that word of their engagement had spurred speculation and commentary at work. Within a week of announcing it, people had been congratulating her on the engagement, _and_ the baby. They'd assumed the only reason the two negotiators would get married was if she'd gotten pregnant. Then there was the woman, from accounting no less, that told her it was a bad idea to marry a fuck-buddy. It pissed her off that people assumed a two-year relationship was just sex.

When Matt had proposed, she'd hadn't been thinking about the complications and hassles. Really, all she'd been thinking was that she loved him very much, and actually did want to marry him. Truthfully, she'd also been thinking that he was cute when he was that nervous. And that speech he'd forgotten in all that nervous energy? He'd remembered what he wanted to say later that night, while they laid in bed together.

He'd told her about his mother, what Josie Flannery had told her boys about love. She'd told Matt that one day he would meet a girl, and fall in love with her. That in that moment, everything would change for him. He'd be awkward and nervous around her, his palms would sweat, and he'd always seem to be tripping over his own words. He'd want to impress her, but he'd be so nervous, he'd do something stupid instead. She told her twelve year-old son, that this girl would make him feel things he never imagined he could, that being with her would feel like the best feeling in the world. She said when Matt found her, he should hold onto her, and love her as long as life allowed.

Matt told Emily then, that he'd found that woman, and he'd planned to do exactly as his mother said. It takes a lot to get Emily tearing up over anything, but when he told her that, more than a few tears slid down her cheeks. Matt had kissed them away, and held her so close.

She watched him now, looking unimaginably peaceful in his sleep. His beautiful, long eyelashes sat stark and black against his pale skin. He wore only boxers, black Batman boxers, with the bat symbol blazing on both the front and the back. She'd giggled the first time she saw them, they were so cute. Like a little boy he had to have boxer shorts of his favorite superhero. Matt had been a little horrified that she thought they were 'cute', but then he got laid that night, so he got over it.

Emily gently stroked his cheek, noting the smoothness that wasn't there before they got home last night. But then a two day negotiation will do that. Except Frank and Duff, HRT took turns, so most of their guys were clean and smooth, but them, the guys, and Cheryl couldn't leave. They'd arrived Tuesday morning, and were stuck there until late Thursday, all cranky from a lack of sleep and not showering for two days. When they got home, Emily jumped in the shower, but Matt had shaved first, before joining her. Yes, they were still partners, and according to Cheryl they would be until they had a legal marriage license, and she had no choice.

Suddenly, Emily had to pee. Easing out of the bed, she made her way quietly to the bathroom. When she came back to the bedroom, she noticed Matt had rolled over to face the windows. She was a little disappointed, that effectively took away her warm cocoon. But then she smiled, an idea forming in her head. They should get up soon anyway.

Emily shimmied out of her clothes, and crawled back into the bed, shimming toward Matt. She wrapped her naked body around his sparsely clothed one, and leaned over and blew into his ear. He twitched, and his eyes fluttered, working their way open slowly to avoid being blinded by the light. Emily tightened her arms around him, and kissed his cheek.

Matt turned to the figure that had woken him, noting that she was most definitely not wearing the cotton tank top or the shorts that went with it. No, Emily was not shy about what she wanted, but then neither was he. He rolled onto his side to face her, wrapped his arms around her, and sealed his lips against hers.

"Good Morning," she said softly, breaking the kiss.

"Mmmm, very good," Matt agreed.

"Today is it, finally."

"Yeah, it's been a long time coming," he said, caressing the soft skin of her back.

"And, we still have to wait another day before the ceremony. I feel like I'll go crazy waiting for then, I need a distraction," Emily told him.

"Hmmm, I think I know a distraction," Matt said, rolling them over so he was leaning over her as she lay on her back. He kissed her deeply and sweetly, letting his body brush hers, so she felt exactly what distraction he had in mind.

Emily moaned into the kiss, tasting him hungrily until he broke it off. Breathlessly, she commented. "They say you're not supposed to do this the day before the wedding."

"No," Matt said, pausing to catch his breath. "They say you have to wait until the wedding night."

"Oh, is that it? Then we have a predicament."

"I don't think so."

"Oh, no? How do you figure?" Emily asked grinning.

"They never say when you're supposed to start waiting," he showed that cocky grin, and dove for her neck, kissing up to her ear, where he whispered. "Besides, if you really believed that, you wouldn't have crawled into this bed buck naked."

Emily laughed, and captured his lips, running her hands along his back, one hand digging into his hair. When Matt's mouth moved from hers to her neck, she took the opportunity to make one last comment. "I don't think we can use this distraction on the plane."

Matt looked at her and smiled. "There's always the Mile-High Club."

Emily giggled, but it turned into a moan when Matt's hand slid down between her legs.

Their flight to Aruba was at three-thirty, so they'd have time to get cleaned up, finishing packing and go. It was an nineteen hour flight, so they'd get there around ten-thirty, and have a few hours to sleep before the ceremony. They'd paid the hotel an extra five hundred dollars to find an officiator, some flowers, and a witness, and have everything ready at four p.m.

They would say their vows, which they'd written, kiss, and be done with it all. The next week would be all theirs to sightsee, lie on the beach, swim in the ocean, and make love until they couldn't walk. Their friends would be disappointed and maybe angry when they got home, and Emily's mother would scream loud enough for them to hear her in LA, but it didn't matter.

They were finally getting married.

* * *

_Yes, it's another fluff piece, inspired by my friend's impending wedding (finally). And I know, I should have been working on the other two stories, but an idea pops you go with it. Thanks for reading and please review!_


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